Former New England Patriots star Rob Gronkowski got emotional Tuesday when discussing the end of his football career.
Gronk hung it up after nine years, three Super Bowl rings and multiple injuries that he had to deal with since entering the league. It’s clear from his recent comments that the physical aspect of the game just took too much of a toll on him.
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“I want to be clear to my fans. I needed to recover. I was not in a good place. Football was bringing me down, and I didn’t like it. And, I was losing that joy in life,” Gronk said as he fought back tears during an event with Abacus Health Products, which is involved in the CBD game. (RELATED: Tom Brady Practices With Suspended Teammate Josh Gordon)
He also added that he might someday feel the need to play football again, but that’s “not the case” at the moment, according to The New York Post.
You can watch the emotional moment below.
“I want to be clear to my fans … I was not in a good place. Football was bringing me down.”
–Rob Gronkowski on his decision to retire pic.twitter.com/zEek2QNPjH
— NFL on ESPN (@ESPNNFL) August 27, 2019
It’s not been a great few days for the NFL from a health perspective. One day, you’ve got Andrew Luck retiring due to health concerns and then a few days later the league has Gronk fighting back tears talking about his issues.
Football can be a brutal sport, and it clearly piled up over nine seasons on Rob Gronkowski. It’s hard not to feel for the guy when he’s so shaken by just discussing his health.
You can tell it bothered him a lot more than the physical elements.
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We’ll have to see what his future holds, but I’d be absolutely shocked if we ever saw him play again. It just doesn’t seem like it’s in the cards at all.
He deserves a long and comfortable retirement. Hopefully, that’s exactly what Gronk finds.